One of the functions of the operating system (OS) is to confirm the configuration information about a device for which the OS is operated. The current information about the device (current device information) is compared with the preset information about the device (preset information) to confirm whether or not a matching result is obtained. If the current device information does not the preset information, for example, there is the possibility that the device cannot be activated or the device cannot be connected to a network. The configuration about the configuration information is intended for security, and unintended device replacement (for example, a theft etc.) can be checked by confirming the configuration information.
The information about a device can be a media access control (MAC) address which is the specific identification information about a network interface card (NIC) as a feature expansion device for expanding a network function.
FIGS. 1 through 8 illustrate the outline of the conventional MAC address managing method.
A server 101 as an information processing device includes a partition 102, a system management device (SMD) 103, and a back plane (BP) 104.
An OS 105 is installed on the server 101.
The partition 102 includes an I/O unit (IOU) 106-i (i=1, 2).
The IOU 106-i includes an I/O controller hub (ICH) 107-i, the NIC 108-i-j (j=1, 2).
The ICH 107 provides an interface such as a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus, a universal serial bus (USB), and a local area network (LAN), etc.
The NIC 108 is a feature expansion card connected to a network for performing communications, and is connected to the ICH 107.
The SMD 103 is a device for managing the server 101, and stores partition information. The partition information includes the MAC address of the NIC 108.
The BP 104 is a circuit substrate provided with a connector for connection of the IOU 106 and the SMD 103. The IOU 106 and the SMD 103 are connected to the BP 104 to configure the server 101.
Described below is the flow of the management of the MAC address after the power-on of the partition 102.
After the power-on of the partition 102, the SMD 103 reads the MAC address from the NIC 108 during the power-on sequence, and stores the address in the SMD 103 (FIG. 1).
After the boot of the OS 105, the MAC address is set by the preset of the OS 105. One of the functions of the OS 105 is to confirm the configuration information intended for security. During the operation, the OS 105 accesses the NIC 108, reads a MAC address, and confirms the configuration information (FIG. 2).
When a hardware error occurs during the operation, and if it is an error of a NIC, then it is common to replace the NIC while continuing the operation (FIG. 3).
After the power-on of newly replacing hardware, the SMD 103 reads the MAC address from the new NIC 108-2-3 to update the partition information (FIG. 4).
The OS 105 accesses the new NIC 108-2-3 and reads the MAC address. Then, it compares the read MAC address with the preset MAC address. Since the read MAC address does not match the preset MAC address, for example, the server may be inoperative, or data cannot be transferred to the NIC (FIG. 5).
When the IOU 106 becomes faulty, it can be considered that the operation continues using a dynamic reconfiguration (DR) function (FIG. 6).
After the power-on of the newly replacing hardware, the SMD 103 reads the MAC address from the new NICs 108-3-1 and 108-3-2 to update the partition information (FIG. 7).
The OS 105 accesses the new NICs 108-3-1 and 108-3-2, and reads the MAC address. Then, it compares the read MAC address with the preset MAC address. Since the read MAC address does not match the preset MAC address, for example, the server may be inoperative, or data cannot be transferred to the NIC (FIG. 8).
To avoid the situation above, it is necessary to reset the MAC address for the OS when hardware is replaced.
As described above, when hardware is replaced due to a fault etc., the MAC address is changed. Therefore, an error can be indicated by the confirmation of the configuration information, thereby disabling the server to be used or the network to be accessed.
Thus, there has been the problem that it is necessary to reset the configuration information for the OS.
Also known is the technique of setting the physical address of the communication device before the replacement as the physical address of a new communication device after replacing the communication device with a new communication device.    [Patent Document 1] Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2007-148978